Have you ever wondered why some people achieve goals, dreams and aspirations, and others do not achieve their heart's desire? Are there times in your life when things show up unexpectedly … like a phone call from someone you were thinking about? Would it surprise you to know that your mind has the ability to attract into your life what you think about? The tricky part is getting your thoughts and your desires synchronized so that your achievements, your dreams, and your aspirations materialize out of your own thoughts.

The first step in changing our life patterns is to realize we are responsible for our own thinking, both negative and positive.  Earl Nightingale once said, "You are where you are in your life because this is where you really want to be, whether you realize it or not." This is a powerful yet scary statement.  How can I be here, if this is not what I want?  Here is where the personal responsibility comes in.  You have free choice!  Knowing that your life reflects the sum total of all your previous choices, create your thoughts to create a new reality.  If you do not like what you see in your life, take full responsibility for your thoughts, make different choices and realize your dreams.

The next step is easy.  Remove all your negative thought patterns that sabotage your goals.  Remove all the "not's" from your thoughts as well as from your vocabulary.  Send clear and concise messages to your subconscious.  As a body worker and personal coach, I have found that many people do not realize how negative their statements are and how much this negative thinking interrupts their ability to achieve success.  For example, when asked about what they want in a relationship, they will start by telling me what they do NOT want.  "I don't want a jerk." Or, "I don't want a drinker or smoker."  What kind of people do you think usually come into their lives after making such statements?  That's right.  All the types of people they so fervently stated were not the ones they were looking for.

What they don't realize is that anything following an "I" or an "I am" statement is considered a command to the subconscious.  The message the mind hears is, "I want a jerk, drinker, and smoker".  The subconscious mind does not differentiate the negative from the positive.  It remembers whatever is introduced.  When we bring into our minds contradicting statements, we create a reality that contradicts our desire.  When we say such things as, "I want to be well.  I'm so tired of being sick" or, "I want to lose weight.   I will never be a size 8", or, "I want more money.  I do not want to work that hard", we might well be sending out conflicting messages.  No matter what we do, our reality does not change.

As human beings we limit experience based on our ability to describe the experience.  Because we ask for things we want, it is important to be clear in our messages when asking for something to come into our life.  I heard of a woman who asked for a husband.  She attracted other women's husbands!  Perhaps if she had asked for someone she could marry and share a life with, she would have brought into her world a different reality.

We have control over our conscious thought.  The old adage that you are, what you eat, can truly be applied here.  YOU ARE WHAT YOU THINK. The way you see yourself has a lot to do with the way your life is.  While we usually are our own worst critics, it is wise to remember not to be so hard on ourselves.  Remember that nature created you perfectly and YOU have talked yourself out of it.

So, in order to start changing your life, you must first change your thoughts and words.  The subconscious mind will create whatever you think about, just as a garden will grow whatever you plant.  The garden does not care if it produces weeds or flowers.  If you choose to plant flowers, here is a formula for creating your desires.  Envision something other than your own current reality.  Simply create a clear picture in your mind of what you want.  The clearer you can be, the easier it will be for your dreams to become reality.  Get all your senses involved in the process – vision, touch, taste, sound, and smell.  How will this reality look? What will be the taste?  What sound will I hear?  What are the smells?

Try these steps. 1) From what did not work in the past, try to discover what you really want.  In other words, discover what would be the opposite of your present created experience.  For instance, if you are now meeting jerks, your opposite reality would mean that you want the opposite of a jerk, a gentleman. Turn your thoughts upside down for a new perspective. 2) Look around for examples to define more clearly.  Remove the negative images, people, movies, advertising and jobs.  Stay away from the negative images and the bad news that feeds our negative thoughts.  Emulate friends and family who have achieved goals.  Seek examples of positive relationships and events all around us that can spark a glow and desire in us.

In every aspect of life, studying past performance helps to develop plans for the future.  As in the computer technology, "garbage in, garbage out", our subconscious mind is our hard drive and keeps exact records of past events.  If you do not like the recurrence of past events, then you can do something different.  It is useless to do the same thing over and over again and expect different results.  Our desires are budding realizations of who we really are and what we really can become.

I challenge you to start doing something different to move towards your goals. Take the smallest of steps, but do something every day that will reprogram your hard drive.  Little by little you will see your thoughts bring a new reality into being. The universe will then be working in harmony with you to bring you all you deserve.

*** Take responsibility – you have made all the choices so far.
*** Take the "nots" out of your vocabulary – think only of what you want.
*** Get in touch with all your senses to describe what you want.
*** Realize that you are entitled to fulfill your dreams and desires. When your thoughts match your
desires, it becomes much easier for the universe to bring you its gifts.
*** Take steps – a little every day to move closer to your realizations.
*** Trust that the universe will bring it to you in a way that is a win-win for everyone involved

(Let Go, Let God)

(Note:  This article was written over 10 years ago.  Gary's 1st published article, leading-edge material before other publications on Changing One's Thoughts, Changes One's Life.)